1. Field
The embodiment relates to a touch panel.
2. Background
A touch panel is a device capable of sensing information input by a touch scheme. A touch panel for sensing a touch input on an image display area by using a human hand or an object has been widely used in an electronic appliance such as personal digital assistants (PDA), a laptop computer, an office automation (OA) device, a medical device, or an automobile navigation system.
As a typical scheme of a touch panel for sensing a touch input from an outside, there have been known a capacitive scheme, a resistive scheme, an electromagnetic induction scheme, an optical scheme, etc., and recently, the capacitive scheme has been widely used.
Since the touch panel must be able to sense information input in a touch scheme as an electrical signal, the touch panel generally includes a sensing electrode for sensing touch stimulation and a circuit for receiving the variation of a signal generated from the sensing electrode. The sensing electrode has a structure in which sensing electrodes are disposed in both directions (for example, longitudinal and traversal directions) in order to sense the coordinates of touch stimulation applied thereto.
Due to the structural limitation of a sensing electrode for sensing a variation in electrostatic capacity, which is generated when a touch signal is applied, the visibility of the touch panel is deteriorated. Due to the difference in hue and light transmittance generated by discontinuity or irregularity of the sensing electrode formed on the touch panel, the sensing electrode is visually recognized or glitters, so that the visibility of the touch panel is increased.
To solve the above described problems, although a scheme of additionally forming a dummy pattern in a region between the sensing electrodes (that is, a region in which any sensing electrodes are not formed) may be considered, there is a limit to remove a phenomenon of increasing visibility due to the structure of the sensing electrode itself. There has been increased a need to provide a touch panel formed to have a shape capable of reducing the visibility.
Meanwhile, a part of a sensing electrode may be damaged due to an error occurring during various kinds of processes to be performed to form the sensing electrode on a substrate, so that the touch sensibility may be deteriorated at the damaged point. There has been increased a request of a technique capable of preventing the touch sensing performance from being deteriorated due to an error in a process of manufacturing a touch panel and a damage in real life.